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Generations of classic power metal reign thanks to Riot and friends

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Generations of classic power metal reign thanks to Riot and friends

The greats of power metal from yesteryear joined forces Friday night at the Rock Box with South Texas legions of the early 2000s and the future of Alamo City metal to form a conglomeration of rock that many concert billings would be tough to match.

Led by Riot once again playing the hometown of bassist Don Van Stavern, but this time doing so 45 years after 1977 debut Rock City, the program also featured Austin’s Ignitor plus classic locals Byfist and the youth of Jessikill.

Playing their first show since late 2019 in Europe, Riot stormed out of the gates with an 18-song, 95-minute set covering a bulk of its career with some newly played tunes. With Hall informing Alamo True Metal that he landed in town from Michigan the day before, Riot held a two-hour rehearsal Thursday, according to a source. Then with Jessikill vocalist Jessica Alejo and guitarist Jyro Alejo donning Riot’s seal-head mascot masks preceding the group’s entrance, Riot treated dedicated South Texas fans — and even visitors from Virginia and Pennsylvania — to another reliably riveting set (setlists in 82-photo slideshow below).

Opening with “Victory” from 2018 and latest album Armor of Light, Riot unleashed a slew of tracks from 1988 powerhouse Thundersteel including second song “Flight of the Warrior.” Thundersteel is arguably Riot’s signature album, though you can’t go wrong with 1981’s Fire Down Under claiming such a moniker either, and you can watch ATM’s Facebook Live footage of more Thundersteel classics “Sign of the Crimson Storm” and “Johnny’s Back” sandwiched by “49er” here.

No one remains in Riot from the debut-album days, as Van Stavern is the longest reigning member, having joined for the 1988 Thundersteel era. He was followed the next year by current lead guitarist Mike Flyntz. Hall etched his place in Riot vocalist lore in 2013 joining drummer Frank Gilchriest, but Friday’s show — coming a day before Riot’s participation in the Hell’s Heroes Fest in Houston — included a new second guitarist, at least for these Texas shows.

Lance Barnewold exhibited his skills with Riot for the first time in the Alamo City, bringing a unique background. Barnewold is not only the drummer in the solo band of Manowar co-founder and former guitarist Ross “The Boss” Friedman but his nephew as well. Friedman played a guest solo on “Warning Fire” on Jack Starr’s Burning Starr’s 2011 powerhouse of an album Land of the Dead, a band fronted at the time by Hall.

For those unfamiliar with Hall’s background as a heavy metal singer in his current and former bands, as well the group Reverence once upon a time, they may likely recognize him from television. Hall was a contestant in early 2020 on “The Voice,” wowing mainstream fans and viewers with his rendition of Foreigner’s “Juke Box Hero,” which we discussed a year ago to the day of Friday’s show via Zoom (watch here). Hall also released solo effort Sonic Healing at the time of the interview in the vein of classic rock tunes after teaming with Metal Church guitarist Kurdt Vanderhoof on the album.

On a night Alice In Chains guitarist/vocalist Jerry Cantrell was playing the Aztec Theatre, Riot continued with the good vibes inside the Rock Box on other classics such as “Outlaw” and “On Your Knees.” Watch more ATM Facebook Live footage of “Altar of the King,” “Angel’s Thunder, Devil’s Reign” and “Road Racin’ “ and ATM videos below of six additional tracks.

Van Stavern and Flyntz took swigs of their patented tequila bottle while dedicating multiple moments to the late guitarist Mark Reale, who’s buried here in San Antonio, plus vocalists Guy Speranza and Rhett Forrester, rhythm guitarist Louie L.A. Kouvaris and famed local DJ Joe “The Godfather” Anthony. The band added a nice touch by inserting the Forrester-sung title track to Restless Breed (watch below), though Van Stavern inexplicably left Armor of Light track “San Antonio” off the set in the one city that deserved to hear his written homage to his hometown. But there was another hometown reference when it was revealed Gilchriest was playing the drum kit of former Riot backstopper and San Antonio’s own Bobby Jarzombek, incidentally with his guitarist brother Ron Jarzombek in attendance.

Ignitor provided direct support to Riot, and that meant the powerful demonic vocals of South Texas Music Walk of Fame star, Corpus Christi native and longtime Austin resident Jason McMaster. Ignitor guitarist Stuart Laurence remains the lone original member of the band that formed in 2003 and once had two women in the group, on vocals and guitar.

Backed by rhythm guitarist Robert Williams, bassist Billy Dansfiell and drummer Pat Doyle, you can watch them perform “Heavy Metal Holocaust” plus footage below of “Secrets of the Ram” and the title track to 2017’s Haunted By Rock N’ Roll.

McMaster has placed his stamp on a variety of original bands including Watchtower, Evil United, Broken Teeth and the group that introduced him to an MTV generation, Dangerous Toys. McMaster has even had Van Stavern as a guest on the podcast he conducts with a former colleague of yours truly, “Metal” Dave Glessner. So when’s the musical collaboration, boys?

Byfist continued its run of local shows since dropping In the End in September 2020. With original rhythm guitarist Nacho Vara once again accompanied by bassist Stony Grantham and drummer Scott Palmer, like Riot the group unveiled a new guitarist stage left.

Manny Santos made his live debut with Byfist on this night having replaced Ernie B. Fans may recognize Santos from Zero The Hero, but he’s also played the axe for 40 years, according to the band’s socials, which included being a 3-peat winner of San Antonio Guitar Wars. Watch Santos and his bandmates in action below on “Mary Celeste” and on finale “In the End.” You don’t even have to be a “worthless scum” to enjoy it.

Jessikill kicked off the night as a prelude to what figures to be the most important and rewarding stretch of its young career. The band embarks on a national tour supporting Yngwie Malmsteen starting this Sunday in Hartford, Connecticut, (ATM details here) But the first order of business was opening for Riot.

Taking the stage to latest video single “Lightning,” the Alejos joined bassist Arturo Knight and drummer Marcel Biel in giving a taste of what national fans about to watch them live for the first time can expect over the next six weeks. Witnessing Alejo on guitar never gets old, but it’s also a pleasant sight seeing the band grow and mature with every new song and performance. Watch them on “Save Me” and below on “Midnight Rush.”

If the presence, and performance, of Riot, Ignitor, Byfist and Jessikill indicated anything, it’s that South Texas heavy metal is in good hands and not going anywhere anytime soon. How lucky do you get to be living here when it comes to the heavy metal scene, San Antonians?

True, there could always have been a larger turnout. But for those who understood the special significance of it all, the Rock Box was the place to be Friday night.

And we could all share a toast of tequila to that.

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Jessikill lands national tour opening for Yngwie Malmsteen

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Jessikill lands national tour opening for Yngwie Malmsteen

Considering they have yet to scratch the surface of their 30s, it may be hard to believe that Jessikill’s core unit of diversified lead vocalist Jessica Espinoza Alejo, shrewd shredding guitarist Jyro Alejo and bassist / vocalist / business entrepreneur Arturo Knight are entering their 10th year as a band. Considering their list of accomplishments, litany of metal mainstays for which they’ve opened, and festivals they’ve played, today’s official announcement may arguably be their greatest achievement.

Jessikill has landed a national spring tour opening for Swedish guitar maestro Yngwie J. Malmsteen. Due to Malmsteen having headlined the Tobin Center last Aug. 1 (coverage here), there are no Texas dates scheduled this time around. Nevertheless, the all-theatre 21-show trek that runs from May 1 through June 4 (see all dates below) marks an incredible moment that, Covid-19 pandemic notwithstanding, will forever be etched in Jessikill’s annals individually and collectively.

“It’s going to be totally badass,” Knight told Alamo True Metal this week. “Even though this is the biggest thing that has ever happened for Jessikill, I could see this also not being the biggest thing happening in the future. Because the tour hasn’t even started yet, but we’re already getting some PR people and some booking managers contacting us. It’s kind of like going from zero to a hundred.”

Kurt Deimer, who opened for former Queensryche vocalist Geoff Tate on Nov. 5 at the Aztec Theatre (coverage here), will also be on the full tour, while Culprit will appear on about half of the dates. But it’s Jessikill’s inclusion that’s sure to blow away fans in the tour’s cities who may not have ever seen the group perform live. Of course, an added interesting twist is that the Alejos and Knight also take part in Sacred Star, a tribute act dedicated to Malmsteen and Ronnie James Dio that includes the former’s classic songs “Rising Force,” “I’ll See the Light Tonight” and “I Am A Viking.”

Knight, who handles Jessikill’s business affairs and made the connections with Malmsteen’s manager to help land the tour, acknowledges that Sacred Star is “literally the only tribute band that exists in the entire world (to Malmsteen). No one can play like Yngwie except for Jyro.”

But is Malmsteen, who’s painfully protective of his unique style of guitar playing, aware the musicians he’s about to take on tour have a spinoff tribute band partially dedicated to him?

“I’m not sure how Yngwie is going to take it,” Knight said. “I’m sure we’ll find out. Jyro learned everything he knows on guitar by being inspired by Yngwie. Our styles are similar, but a lot of people have never seen Jyro play on a national stage.”

Jessikill has opened for countless national and international acts throughout Texas over the years. The group served as the backing band in 2016 for former Judas Priest, Iced Earth and one-time Malmsteen vocalist Tim “Ripper” Owens (see 34-photo slideshow below) and played Rocklahoma on a pair of occasions. Naturally, they’ve played San Antonio festivals such as Fiesta Oyster Bake and Siesta Fest. The upcoming tour, however, may outrank them all when it’s said and done.

But that’s not the only thing Jessikill has going on.

The band competed last Friday for the first time in the third Wacken Metal Battle San Antonio Regional, attempting to be the singular artist from the United States that will go on to play the prestigious three-day German festival this summer. Jessikill and Donella Drive advanced to the state final Sunday, March 20, at Come And Take It Live in Austin. They will compete against defending 2020 state champion Hanna Barakat, fellow Austin Regional winner Sadistic Force and victors from the Lubbock, Corpus Christi, Houston and Dallas regionals.

“The show was really amazing,” Knight said. “The reason we didn’t do the battles last time was we thought it was sketchy with the promoters behind the scenes. We decided to do it this time because we got the offer, and for the publicity of it, and to get more fans.”

Although Hanna Barakat won the State Battle at Come And Take It Live on March 14, 2020 (coverage here), the Austin band was shut out of the national final that May in Los Angeles due to the Covid shutdown that ensued the following week throughout the country. The 2021 Wacken Open Air festival was canceled, so there were no battles last year. Now, in 2022, a slew of bands will take another crack at it.

But next month’s state final may be a moot point for Jessikill. Should they win and go on to represent Texas bands in Los Angeles for the right to play at Wacken, that West Coast event scheduled for May 7 would conflict with the Malmsteen tour. That night, Jessikill is scheduled to play clear across the country at the legendary Gramercy Theater in New York. The following day, Jessikill and Malmsteen take part in the annual M3 Festival outside of Baltimore.

Whichever road Jessikill travels, Knight and the Alejos will be accompanied by often fill-in drummer Marcel Biel. Full-time Jessikill drummer Jordan Ames recently had a baby, so Biel — who rounds out the Sacred Star tribute band anyway — performed at the Wacken Regional last week. Knight said Biel is slated to do the Malmsteen tour too.

Knight acknowledged Jessikill will have a hometown headlining date during an off night from the tour Memorial Day weekend Sunday, May 29, with several local openers at a venue to be announced. But there’ll be another hometown show two weeks prior to the trek when Jessikill, along with Byfist, supports Riot and Ignitor.

Jessikill has jammed with Riot bassist and San Antonio’s own Don Van Stavern on several occasions and often plays Riot’s “Sign of the Crimson Storm” during tribute or cover shows around town. But the concert scheduled for Friday, April 22, at Vibes Event Center (tickets here) figures to be extra special with Jessikill supporting Riot.

“We’ve been looking forward to that one for many years,” Knight said. “It’s been a good five years that we haven’t played with them. But of course we’re really good friends with Donnie, so we’d always see him. We’ve been talking about Jessikill with Riot, so now that we’re on the bill, it’s going to be a really kickass show.”

As if all that isn’t enough, Jessikill continues to work on the follow-up to Another World. The band released the video for “Lightning” last November (watch it below), and it was one of the songs Jessikill performed at last week’s Wacken Regional to impress the panel of judges.

“We have at least 10-plus songs in our database that we prepare and write beforehand,” Knight said. “We’re going to release something before the Yngwie tour so we can take something with us on tour. Depending on our schedules, we might be able to release a (full-length) album, ‘cause we’re really fast in the studio. But we also want to make sure the music is really, really perfect. It might be an EP or it might be an album. The new music’s definitely different but not too different. We’re definitely trying different styles of music so we’re not playing the same thing.”

Another song Jessikill performed at the Wacken regional was “The Beast,” the lone Jessikill tune that features Knight on lead vocals for the first verse.

“I wrote it when I was, like, 15 years old, and I’m 28,” Knight said. “Honestly, every single time we play it, sometimes I still mess up. It still feels brand new. Jessikill rehearses a lot. Basically, we’re playing like KISS — we’re playing the same set. But sometimes you still mess up. It’s because our music is really, really technical. It also depends on our physical abilities, how much we rehearse. It’s much more than just playing the song. The song is really old, but we try to add new stuff to it too.”

In addition to his duties on stage, Knight is in charge of the group’s business activities. It’s a gig within the gig, so to speak, that he relishes.

“Oh yeah, I really love the business part of it,” he said. “That was one of my dreams growing up. When I was in one of my younger bands, I had to choose. Do you want to be in extracurricular activities or be in music? It just so happens that music and business are together in this, so I’m doing what I love while also on the business part of it I’m able to grow the band and the brand. The fact that we’re able to make money doing it is just icing on the top.

“For me, doing business and being able to book, I love to always accomplish stuff. Jessica and Jyro, they promote like hell. They’re out there doing their thing, doing the ground work. When someone does come up to them and says, ‘Hey, I wanna talk to someone to get this done,’ Jessica and Jyro both bring them to me. I make sure things are closed, and I also don’t like to take B.S. A lot of times, people like to take advantage of local bands. We don’t take that.”

And speaking of Jessica and Jyro . . . what’s the secret to the trio’s relationship and friendship flourishing after all these years — even before Jessikill existed? It goes beyond the stage, whether it’s in Jessikill, Sacred Star or other tribute acts such as Iron Maiden’s Seventh Son or Dokken’s Dokkit.

“I’ve known Jessica for many, many years, since I was, like, 9 years old,” said Knight, who performed with RockStar Riot opening for Loudness in 2008 at Randy’s Ballroom at age 15 (see slideshow). “When I was 8, 9, 10, when I first got on stage, one of the very first people I met performing, which was at Fiesta, was Jessica and her sister. And her dad, who did sound for us. Me and Jessica have been friends for a long time. And Jessikill has been around since 2012.

“We’re really just friends having a good time. We don’t really take things too serious, which might be a bad thing. But we truly enjoy what we’re doing. We’ve experienced some of the biggest points in our lives with each other, next to each other. And on top of that, we do get in fights. We do argue. We’re like brothers and sisters, which I think is a big thing that every band has to have if you want to be comfortable with each other.

“A lot of bands work very professionally where all you know is their first name, last name and how many kids they have. But it’s not really, really true chemistry that you’re able to build like a brother or sister where, even if you get in a fight, you know they’re still your brother or sister. Within the band, with me, Jessica and Jyro, we never worry about one another doing anything that will hurt us. Because we have full trust in each other and loyalty. Jessica has turned down record labels and other bands and tours just to play with us. Same here. Me and Jyro have turned down things just because we really only want to focus on Jessikill. We’re really loyal to the band. We are together every single day, but we give each other our space.”

It’s all led to a tour that’s certain to be memorable for three “kids” from San Antonio who are in the prime of their musical careers. But will Malmsteen, who’s often regarded as a musician who doesn’t pay much mind to those supporting him on tour, take notice?

“Out of 30 days,” Knight said, “we’re bound to have one date where we talk with him!”

It’s also bound to be part of a whirlwind next four months in the life of Jessikill. So excuse Knight if he lost track of the fact the band has existed for a decade.

“You’re right,” he said. “I didn’t even think about that!”

YNGWIE MALMSTEEN, KURT DEIMER, JESSIKILL TOUR DATES

  • 05.01.22 HARTFORD, CT INFINITY HARTFORD

  • 05.03.22 PATCHOGUE, NY PATCHOGUE THEATER

  • 05.04.22 LEESBURG, VA TALLY HO THEATER

  • 05.06.22 NORWALK, CT WALL ST THEATER

  • 05.07.22 NEW YORK, NY GRAMERCY THEATER

  • 05.08.22 COLUMBIA, MD M3 FESTIVAL

  • 05.09.22 CHESTER, NY SUGAR LOAF PERFORMING ARTS

  • 05.11.22 TOLEDO, OH STRANAHAN THEATER

  • 05.12.22 ST. CHARLES, IL ARCADIA THEATER

  • 05.13.22 HOBART, IN HOBART ART THEATER

  • 05.14.22 CLEVELAND, OH THE ODEON

  • 05.16.22 DENVER, CO ORIENTAL THEATER

  • 05.18.22 RENO, NV VIRGINIA ST. BREWHOUSE

  • 05.19.22 AGOURA HILLS, CA CANYON AGOURA

  • 05.20.22 MONTCLAIR, CA CANYON MONTCLAIR

  • 05.21.22 FRESNO, CA TOWER THEATER

  • 05.22.22 SANTA CLARITA, CA CANYON SANTA CLARITA

  • 05.24.22 TEMPE, AZ THE MARQUEE

  • 05.25.22 TUCSON, AZ RIALTO THEATER

  • 06.03.22 ORLANDO, FL PLAZA LIVE

  • 06.04.22 FT. LAUDERDALE, FL PARKER PLAYHOUSE

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